“Turn your face toward the sun and the shadows will fall behind you.”~ Maori Proverb

Times have been tough right? Bordering insurmountable tough? Avalanches of challenges blocking the sight of inner wisdom?

Yes, I’ve been there dear friends and I want to share with you an encounter with the Dalai Lama himself that gave me the strength to keep trucking on!

For those of you that haven’t been to India yet, when you travel to this sacred land something karmically begins to happen from the moment you arrive. An intense clearing out begins which results in all your stuff coming to the surface so it can be blissfully released. In other words, it’s a bit like having your finger on the fast forward button of spiritual growth.

I often liken this process to the mixing of oil and water. Where water is spirit, oil is ego and in the energy of India the oil is separating and rising to the surface to be cleaned away.

Leading any kind of group where all this is going on often results in super fast growth and clearing for the group leader due to them holding the space for everyone else. It can be quite intense as each moment carries with it yet another heightened karmic lesson.

As I was experiencing this phenomenon in full force on my most recent trip I kept finding banners with the following poem written by the Dalai Lama everywhere. I had never noticed these before in all my previous trips to Dharamsala, the hometown of the Dalai Lama in India. To the extent that even when I chose a place to sit in a restaurant I found it scribbled on the wall beside me in pen!

Never Give Up

No matter what is going on
Never give up
Develop the heart
Too much energy in your country
Is spent developing the mind
Instead of the heart
Be compassionate
Not just to your friends
But to everyone
Be compassionate
Work for peace
In your heart and in the world
Work for peace
And I say again
Never give up
No matter what is going on around you
Never give up 

~ Dalai Lama XIV

 

Editor’s Note: Although the message is from the Dalai Lama, the message was translated into a poem with permission of HH by Ron Whitehead, a Louisville, Kentucky resident.

 

It felt as though the Dalai Lama was urging me on with these words. I felt that very strongly indeed. Then after my group left I attended one of his public teachings with some of my monastic friends. These teachings are busy with over a thousand people in attendance, sometimes more.

We all sit on cushions, which we have used to book our spots a few days in advance of the teachings, so the orderly seating arrangements of the West are nowhere to be found. Consequently when it is time for the Dalai Lama to leave it is a bit of a free for all as to who gets up closer to him as he walks by.

I was in the back and the only chance of seeing him was by looking over a railing as he descended the stairs. On the second day as the Dalai Lama walked down these stairs he suddenly stopped in his tracks, looking up he gazed straight into my eyes, holding it for a few moments before he nodded and moved on. As the people around me gasped in surprise I knew in that instant he was now telling me in person to never-give-up.

My natural reaction during all of this was to wave at him. Probably not how a Tibetan would revere him but that is my authentic way of being and I am delighted I got the chance to show him how much I admire him for all that he does in the world. It was a moment I will remember and hold dear for the rest of my life.

Recharged from this encounter and encouragement from the great man himself I got back on track. It was what I needed to know that the work I was doing really meant something. Was of benefit.

So for those of you currently facing challenging times and searching for strength I hope you too find comfort in the words of this powerful poem just as I did.

For miracles are an everyday thing, we just have to be open to them happening and look for them in the smallest details. Even something as simple as a poem scribbled on a restaurant wall…

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Ed: Lynn Hasselberger